Tom Brady is better than Joe Flacco.
In fact, Brady is one of the best players to ever play in the NFL. He's been voted to the Pro Bowl nine times, he's won three Super Bowls and he was the NFL's most valuable player in 2007 and 2010.
Flacco might not even be the best quarterback from his own draft class. (That honor is debatable, but a case could be made for Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan). Flacco has never made the Pro Bowl and never been to the Super Bowl.
Granted, Brady is seven years older than Flacco. But when Brady was Flacco's age he had been to three Pro Bowls and won three Super Bowls. Brady has even beat Flacco three of the five times that the two teams have played each other.
So which quarterback is better when the two teams face off, as they will this Sunday in Foxboro? Flacco, of course.
As Doug Kyed of NESN notes, Flacco's numbers against the Patriots are better than Brady's against the Ravens. Take a look:
Flacco: 1,271 yards, 9 touchdowns and 4 interceptions
Brady: 1,278 yards, 5 touchdowns and 7 interceptions
Perhaps even more importantly, Flacco has gotten the best of Brady in both of their two previous playoff encounters. In 2010 Flacco only completed four of the 10 passes he attempted, but Brady's three interceptions helped the Ravens get out to an early lead that they would never relent. The Ravens' 33-14 win was New England's first home playoff loss in the Brady-Belichick era.
In last year's AFC championship game, the Patriots held on for a 23-20 win, but Flacco had the stronger stat line. Flacco went 22-for-36 for 306 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Brady was 22-for-36 for 239 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
It must be mentioned, however, that Flacco has had the luxury of facing a porous Patriots secondary while Brady is going up against a legendary Ravens defense.
This is certainly not to say that Flacco has the upper hand on Brady, but it is interesting to note how well Flacco has performed in match-ups against the Patriots. Indeed, if the underdog Ravens want to have any shot in New England this weekend, they'll likely need Flacco to work his magic again.
